Is Today A Day Of Salvation?
Faith Is Something To Be Lived Out, Not Quoted
by Eric Elkin
In the aftermath of the historic U.S.-North Korea Summit, Facebook lit up with comments praising the work of the president. Many conservatives declared to their counterparts, regardless of their feelings about the president, this day was significant. Liberals appeared to be unmoved by the comments.
Since the agreement remained a secret, I’m not sure what we are to celebrate. Still, we should at least be open to supporting the possibility of reconciliation between enemies.
To attend the North Korean Summit, however, the president walked away from another. His comments and early departure from the G7 Summit angered many nations with friendly ties to the U.S. It made it hard to celebrate the mending of one relationship when it came at the expense of several others.
Political disagreements expressed on Facebook and the tension between nations reveal the truth of the human condition. We will never run out of opportunities for reconciliation.
Elected leaders keep talking about unifying the nation, but I’m hard-pressed to see where that is taking place. The divide between people feels like it keeps getting wider with every new president. It leaves me wondering, is there any common ground in today’s public arena? Do we share any fundamental agreements about values?
In our culture, we disconnect issues of faith, salvation, and heaven from the reality of everyday life. When these are divided, people take great liberties with scripture. It often leads people to speak as God, rather than to God about their actions.
Paul’s words in 2 Corinthians speaks directly to our modern context. In the midst of an ongoing conflict between people with different opinions, Paul declares, “Now is the day of salvation.”
Meaning, right here and now, in the everyday fabric of life, we are to live as though God is standing before us.
As theologian Carla Works points out, “For Paul, failing to love one another is a sign of accepting the grace of God ‘in vain.”Let us remember this point as we navigate the problematic community issues which seek to divide us. Then let us live as though today were the day of salvation.
Click to read 2 Corinthians 6: 1-13
Reflection Questions:
- Where do you have common ground with someone who opposes your point of view?
- How much agreement is necessary to be a community?
- How does your faith inform your daily life?
- What does, “Now is the day of salvation” mean to you?